The Frozen Pizza Conundrum

Lets face it; frozen pizza is a culinary layover, and not a destination. It is the place you go when your pizza-making skills are sadly lacking and there remain no other local pizza options at your fingertips. So, fire up the oven to 425ºF, unwrap what you got, and hope that the freezer-burn has not taken hold.

While all frozen pizzas may not be such an exercise in bleakness and mediocrity, it is fair to say that most are. With their soggy crusts, flavorless and indefinite mystery toppings, and cheese that just doesn't seem like any cheese you should electively be eating, most frozen pizza is reserved for those who don't care or are too out of it to care.

That said, I am not an unyielding cynic when it comes to frozen pizza and do welcome hearty and successful attempts at breaking down the soft decline of low expectations. O Organics Roasted Vegetable and Cheese Pizza appeared as a beacon of frozen hope amongst the stacks of mediocre, ice-bound pizzas. First off, it is made with entirely organic ingredients, which is not impossible to find in the world of frozen pizzas, but not all that common. This attribute alone will likely sell a few pizzas.

Another characteristic of O Organics pizza that provides a unique appeal is that it is made in Italy from "Italian ingredients." While I am a huge fan of Italian imports, I question the value of having a pizza assembled in Italy, frozen, and then shipped halfway across the world. Could this pizza, considering it is made with fairly conventional organic ingredients (tomato sauce, onions, zucchini, etc), have just as easily been made locally in the states, eliminating the numerous gallons of fossil fuel it took to get it here? I mean it is just a frozen pizza?

OK, I am have stepped off my soapbox now, and will tell you that, all things considered, this particular pizza was exceptional for a frozen pizza. The crust was reasonably crisp and flavorful, and the grilled eggplant, and peppers were easily identifiable as well as being tasty. No, it did not taste like a fresh homemade pizza, but relative to the dismal state of frozen pizzas, it resides somewhere at the top of the heap. But make no mistake; even thought this is billed as an "organic pizza" this should not be considered health food by any stretch of the imagination. These personal-sized pan pizzas (about 9 inches in diameter) contain about 14 grams of fat and 920 grams of sodium, which is a bit excessive for one sitting (to be fair the manufacturers define it as two servings per container, but who are they kidding?). Also, there is one strange perk (or drawback) of this particular pizza. The last ingredient (or advisory) states the pizza, "may contain tuna (fish)". Not sure what to make of this, as I was unable to find any trace of tuna on my pizza, but those of you that are fish-phobic, or just trying to remain vegetarian, be warned.

O Organics Roasted Vegetable and Cheese Pizza are available at Safeway, Pavillions, Vons, Dominicks, and Albertsons and are sold for $5.95 per pizza.

Travel down the grocery aisles with Eric as he keeps an eager, but skeptical, eye on the merchandise and foodstuff that fill the grocery shelves. Learn what's hot, what's not, and what's just plain weird, as he obsessively reads labels, admires packaging, dismisses misleading marketing ploys, and takes you along for some serious yet fun food shopping.
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